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ABOUT

What We Are

A “city of neighborhoods”, Chicago is truly a melting pot of ethnic influence, taste and style. We think of our menu as Modern Midwestern – rooted in this region, while reflecting what we see around us.

The space, from Art and Tyler Mendoza and local designer Jordan Mozer, was inspired by the history of Chicago, a city that was reduced to char and reborn as the world’s first modern city. Within the restaurant, repurposed wood – some felled from a recent electrical storm – is used throughout the space, with walls composed of baked brick and charred Douglas fir. Much of our menu uses natural cooking techniques - think direct fire, clay pots, tandoor ovens - and many of our specialty cocktails are built with beverages that have been aged in charred oak. The bar itself is composed of riveted steel (mimicking the el nearby) and topped with repurposed decades–old highway barricades. In the evening, the space, filled with weathered oak stools covered in stockyard leather, are bathed in a warm glow from custom-made linen lamps. Communal tables add a convivial feel, and the space is wrapped in murals inspired by oak trees.

At Oak + Char, we pay homage to those influences with a distinct Midwestern sensibility.